BloodHorse.com

Less than a month after a surprising second-place finish in her season-opening prep race, champion filly Proud Spell (profile) was retired, moved home, and put into broodmare service. A homebred for Airdrie owner Brereton Jones, the multimillionaire daughter of Proud Citizen (SRO) was sent to Airdrie Stud's Indian Charlie (SRO) for ...

We're only a few weekends away from the biggest day in horse racing. At the same time, we're one year removed from Eight Belles' break-down immediately after her historic run, and another couple since Barbaro's tragic return to the track following his Derby win. And in the news today is Old Fashioned (profile), the onetime Derby ...

Just about anyone starting out as a Thoroughbred breeder perceives himself as a near-expert. After all, it's just horses, right?  No brain surgery here. Whether it's because of a lifelong love of horses or a family background in racing or the self-assuredness of having succeeded at another enterprise, the pattern is common:  Feel ...

I haven't paid too much attention to the Godolphin phenom Desert Party (profile) -- I've already made it clear who will win the 2009 Kentucky Derby! -- but he's worth a good look. Desert Party is a good example of a Thoroughbred female family branch that has lay nearly dormant for several generations but which is showing signs of ...

In a recent survey about Thoroughbred breeding and pedigree content on BloodHorse.com, I asked readers to suggest topics they'd like to read about more often. A frequently-repeated request was to run ''introductory'' articles about various breeding theories.  Apparently it can be confusing to have text referring to ''5 x 3 inbreeding'' or ...

You've probably read all of their names at some point or other during the past year. A few might be longtime favorites whose pedigrees appear immediately in your mind's eye; others are perhaps more vague. All 10 mares chosen as candidates for the 2008 MarketWatch Thoroughbred Broodmare of the Year are worth further review, however, and here's ...

If you've ever caught yourself referring generically to facial tissue as Kleenex ... or wallboard as Sheetrock ... or instant adhesive as Super Glue, you can probably understand how difficult it is to write a story about synthetic racetrack surfaces without using the name Polytrack.  And I'm going to ask for extra credit, because recently ...

If you thought Ribot's male-line influence through Cormorant was limited to Go for Gin (SRO) in Maryland, Albert the Great (SRO) in Pennsylvania, and Nobiz Like Shobiz (SRO) in Kentucky, think again! While working on the AEI features in MarketWatch last month, I noticed the frequent appearance of a New York-based stud (one with a $3,000 ...

  You're here because you're a fan of Thorouhbred breeding and pedigrees. But can you be more specific? By now I hope you're familiar with the Pedigree Analysis columns on BloodHorse.com (including Porter on Pedigrees by Alan Porter and Mahubah's Corner by Avalyn Hunter).  You're reading this post, so you're familiar with The ...

  Okay, the truth is, trainer Larry Jones will discuss Thoroughbred pedigrees and breeding only if YOU ask him to. Jones will be the next guest on Talkin' Horses, an interview that is conducted with questions submitted by readers of BloodHorse.com.  The problem (as I see it) is that most Talkin' Horses segments attract a viewership ...